All Aboriginal artists

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Aboriginal artists looking for help in developing their craft and promoting their work can find what they're seeking in the heart of Winnipeg at Urban Shaman Inc., Manitoba's only Aboriginal artist-run centre.

The centre, established in 1996, supports contemporary Aboriginal artists working in all mediums, offering professional development, education and training, as well as providing a forum for their art to be displayed and promoted.

The centre was formed by visual artist Louis Ogemah, arts administrator Debra Prince, and Liz Barron, who provided the necessary business expertise.

Leanne L'Hirondelle is director of Urban Shaman. Although many other artist-run centres exist, one major thing sets this centre apart, she explained.

"It's Aboriginal. The board is Aboriginal. The staff is Aboriginal. What we show is Aboriginal art - contemporary and traditional. It's a mixture of both. And that's unique, because most other artist-run centres are not Aboriginal," L'Hirondelle said.

"The reason that Urban Shaman was formed was because Aboriginal artists are kind of excluded from other places that exhibit art. And this way Urban Shaman can offer Aboriginal artists a chance to show their work, as well as understanding where the work comes from," she said.

Currently, Urban Shaman has just over 70 member artists. Most members are from Manitoba, although a few are from other areas of Canada.

The next event on the schedule at Urban Shaman will be Crossfire, a showing by artist David Hannan running from Oct. 27 to Nov. 25.

Also upcoming are two annual events hosted by Urban Shaman. Shooting From the Hip, the centre's annual youth workshops and exhibition will begin March 15, 2001, and the members' show will run May and June 2001.